Hi All,

I have problem with my new bought MC 2003 CVT. When I switch to "D" position car is shaking. Even when driving and going to stop for example before red light in road cross car after stopping is shaking 1-2 seconds. It is much more evidence when car/engine is cold after 10 km drive it is much smoother.
When switch to "R" there is no shaking even with cold engine.

Does anybody know where to find problem? Maby I should change oil in CVT but my car is only about 30.000 millage.

Best wishes
ArekS

 

when your car is cold, changing gears in CVT is kinda iffy. Mine does that too. I will be in Reverse pulling out of my space, and shifting to drive almost stalls my car. just let your car warm up a little, especially if you are up north. Its not cold enough in Texas to make me warm up my car before i drive it but it might for you. Enjoy your new toy and i hope this helps!

PS, always check your trans fluid anyway. CVTs have a history of failing so take good care of it!

 

Your CVT fluid should be changed at 25k miles. Get it done ASAP. There is no repairing a CVT, only replacing at a cost of $6k+.

 

Mine does what Aggie describes...when it's cold out, shifting from R to D makes the car almost stall out if I don't let it warm up well. It's always done it, but it's worse the colder the car is.

 

Same here...

 

How can I check the CVT fluid level or quality? Mine is 2003 Cooper.
I don't see any dip stick..
Also is it possible to change the CVT fluid by myself? I change engine oil by myself.

 

It's possible, but the fluid is hard to come by and expensive. I'd say if you can get a shop to do it for $150-200 you are doing quite well.

 

OK. Thanks for answer. Tomorrow I am going to dealer to check/change oil in CVT.
We will see what will change

Best wishes
ArekS

 

it is cold here in Texas now, very cold. We have had issues with our 2003 mini - took to dealer and they are saying it needs a new transmission... for $10K. At 57K miles, i'm thinking this is way out of line and see that there are issues with the CVT automatic transmission.
Has anyone been successful with contacting Mini USA for assistance? Our dealership is totally un helpful.

 

I've got a 2003 Cooper with 20K miles.

I had my CVT fluid changed this fall by a trusted non-MINI Chicago area shop (an ex-MINI tech. works there).

They said the fluid was so dirty they needed to flush it twice. I've had no problems or issues in the 1 1/2 years I've had the car.
It does shift into D or N smoother now than before, although we don't use that MINI much during the winter.

 

Good to know I'm not along with this. The funny thing is, I don't remember it doing it before this winter. Fluid was changed about 15k miles ago too.

How long do you let it warm up?

BTW, I just ran across an alternate option for the tranny fluid for the CVT the other day, which is perhaps an improvement over the original:

Redline Non-Slip CVT Fluid:
http://new.minimania.com/InvDetail.c...298&googlebase

 

That's a tough decision if it's a tranny's replacement, almost equal value of the car itself. $6-10K transmission vs $6-12K car re-sale price.

I think VW recently changed their warranty policy on their tranny's due to consumer pressures, MINI owners needs to start their own campaign or find legal assistance to go thru the right channels. What's the old saying....United, we stand, divided we fall...

Good luck on your transmission issue and hope it's just low fluid or needed the fluid changed.

 

Hi! This is off topic,but does anyone's CVT R50 "jerk" when accelerate from stop?Mine does everytime when taking off+_+.I don't know if its a common thing on these CVT's.Also at around 2200 rpm I feel the car rattling somewhere underneath or from the engine bay.I've just got this car for like a month and It has 27k miles on clock!Thanks alot!

 

Might have the jerk you mention - can you describe it a little more?

As for the rattling, that seems abnormal. Does it rattle every time at 2200 rpm, or only in certain circumstances? See if it rattles at 2200 rpm in neutral or park.

 

Like everytime I take off the car would lurch...it feels like stalling with a manual tranny.But if I push the gas a lil hard,the car will accelerate just fine.As for the rattle,It does it everytime I hit a round 2200 or so rpm then disappear(it wont happen at lower or higher then 2200).And yes,It does it no matter the gear is in neutral or park...even in SD...

 

Hmmm. Not getting that kind of jerk. On mine, around 20 mph or so, it's almost as if the gas pedal is pressed down suddenly for a second or two, even though it isn't. I've gotten used to it. Only time it feels like it's beginning to stall is occasionally when coming to a stop, which from what I can gather from around here is normal for this transmission.

If it hasn't already been done, I recommend changing the transmission fluid - it's at about the mileage and probably age it should be done. This fluid looks to be a good alternate to the factory Esso fluid:

http://new.minimania.com/web/Item/NMG7298/InvDetail.cfm

The Esso fluid is a little harder to get a hold off, and more expensive. If you get the Redline stuff yourself, shop around a little, minimania doesn't have the best price.

As to your rattle, I'm not sure. You could have someone else rev the car and listen yourself with the bonnet open to see if you can further pin point it. You could also get under the car and make sure everything is nice and snug down there.

 

I'm planning to bring my car to dealership to get some fresh cvt fluid but they ask for 280+_+...thats insane...so I havent got that much money for it yet(im a college student so...) and for that alternate....I dont know if its safe o put into this cvt...and as I know the process is not just drain and fill...!Has anyone used this redline product???

 

My dealer charged about $190 for it, but I plan on doing it myself next time around.

I plan on using the Redline for my next transmission fluid change...if I haven't sold MINI by then. Hoping to get a first-gen S as a replacement.

 

Do you know the complete procedure for changing the fluid? I hoping it could be easy enough for me to do...lol...!

 

Just found this very informative thread over on mini2:

http://www.mini2.com/forum/first-gen...acement-2.html

 

Thanks for that.So did you end up replacing the fluid with the Redline alt?

 

Not yet - if I haven't sold the car by its next oil change, I'll be changing the transmission fluid at the same time as changing the oil. I do plan on using the Redline and actually expect it to be better.